The Scoop: The Path is a meditation community and institute for anyone interested in training their brain to be happier. Dina Kaplan founded The Path to help make meditation fun and community-focused. The Path offers uplifting wellness programs to help people channel their energy toward positive goals and build strong relationships by being kind, compassionate, and authentic.
As the CEO of a tech company in New York City, Dina Kaplan looked like she had everything together on the outside. But on the inside, she was in crisis.
“I was playing a role because I was afraid to be myself,” Dina told us. “I was living in ‘the should’ and doing everything I thought I ‘should’ do and not being true to myself.”
Dina changed her life through meditation and now teaches those lessons to others.
One day, Dina was walking to her office in SoHo when she experienced a panic attack that left her frozen on the street corner. She stood looking at her office and didn’t think she had the confidence to safely make it across the street to get there. A month later she had left the company she founded and was on a one-way flight to Bali (with a wink and nod at the cliche!).
Dina ended up traveling around the world, and one day, while walking off a flight to India, Dina happened to make conversation with a man who said he was going to a retreat. He invited her to join and Dina said yes, thinking it was a date! It turned out he had invited her to join a silent, gender-segregated, twelve day meditation retreat.
“It was the worst date of all time,” she joked. “We meditated for 10 hours a day every day and could not move. It was the most intense introduction to meditation.”
Eight days into the retreat, Dina had an epiphany about her life and her life’s purpose. She decided to stop chasing the mirage of popularity and start being true to her own path. When she got back to the States, she founded The Path to teach others how to use meditation to better themselves from the inside out.
“Everything we do at the Path is about helping people be kinder to themselves and fall a little more in love with themselves,” Dina told us. “We can train our brains to be kinder and more compassionate, and when we do that, we can be more fun and present in our relationships.”
The Program Supports a Playful & Loving Community
Meditation gives people the opportunity to filter out the noise and stress of their everyday lives. It’s a way to slow down for a few peaceful moments of self-reflection — and maybe even a little silliness. The Path welcomes people of all points of view, and its team endeavors to make meditation fun for beginners as well as certified experts.
You can learn more about The Path and its programs by signing up for their invitation list. The Path is also currently accepting applications for online meditation teacher training, a three-month certificate program for anyone who wants to learn more about Buddhism, become a meditation teacher, or join a happy, inspiring community of meditators.
The Path also has corporate meditations that foster greater well-being. This team-building exercise can help employees decrease their stress and increase their focus.
The Path runs meditation classes that are accessible and inviting to anyone interested in self-improvement.
Dina said her goal is to push meditation into the mainstream and show people how beneficial it can be to their happiness.
“Being on a spiritual path means accepting yourself, warts and all, and working toward being better,” Dina said. “All these tools we teach can help people be more present, and that helps their partner feel more seen, heard, and important.”
Whether it’s promoting private meditation coaching or joining a retreat, The Path helps people to cultivate a kinder and more loving attitude in life — and that can have a tremendously positive impact on their relationships.
The Path sees people from a variety of professional backgrounds coming together to take part in a meditative experience and support each other’s personal growth. Dina hosts regular virtual and in-person events that strengthen this community feeling and inspire loving relationships to blossom.
Some people who join meditations with The Path jokingly refer to it as a dating service because so many romantic relationships have started at its events. People have a chance to get to know each other on a deeper level by meditating together, so it’s no surprise that some of them have found love along the way.
Dina said she knows of many couples who met through The Path or had their first date at an event with The Path, and one of them has even gotten married and had a baby.
A Diverse Team Motivated by Kindness & Self-Reflection
Dina said one of the greatest joys of founding The Path has been working with so many driven, thoughtful, and empathetic individuals. She has put together a small but passionate team to support her mission of making meditation fun, light, happy, and even sexy! And she loves getting to know the people who join The Path’s teacher training program.
“The teachers we have trained include people who have founded charter middle schools and people who ran newsrooms,” Dina said. “Everyone comes from such diverse backgrounds, united by a desire to incorporate meditation into our lives and work.”
Meditation teachers and students come together to learn from one another.
The Path’s Teacher Training Program has helped inspire a new generation of spiritual guides and meditation leaders. And The Path just announced two new sections that will start in January 2021. The program includes 12 classes over the course of three months. It always sells out and has gotten great feedback from participants.
“This course has enhanced my ability to recognize and improve my own attitude in an attempt to reduce stress and suffering for myself and for those around me,” one person who graduated from The Path’s teacher training said. “I aim to embody the concepts learned in this compassion training in every realm of my life.”
Dina has traveled the world studying meditation techniques, and now she shares her insights about mindfulness, loving-kindness, and general wellness with aspiring teachers in the community.
During the coronavirus pandemic, many people have sought out The Path in hopes of finding the peace of mind and strength of will to weather the challenges in their daily lives.
The Path unites people in a calming and loving environment, and that has been a great comfort to singles, couples, and families during months of lockdowns and social distancing. Through its private meditation coaching, The Path can provide heartfelt guidance and bring clarity to people in crisis.
Whether they’re facing career pressures or relationship strife, people can use The Path’s meditation skills to calm their nerves, build up their confidence, and find their true selves.
“We’ve seen a lot of interest in what we’re doing — and in wellness in general,” Dina said. “It feels incredibly rewarding to be running the Path and giving people the tools to feel more peaceful and happy.”
The Path Encourages Its Members to be Present
The Path sets people on a positive and uplifting journey, and its teachings can do wonders for their relationships, careers, and self-esteem. Dina was rudderless when she first arrived in Asia and now knows that her mission is to spread and share meditation. She loves leading others in self-reflection and helping them find their own sense of inner peace.
Dina and her team have dedicated themselves to bring the “light” back to enlightenment. The Path has created an array of engaging and educational resources to show people that daily meditation doesn’t have to be a chore.
“The Path community is all about bringing happiness, playfulness, and fun into people’s lives,” Dina explained. “Meditation is a great way to bring more light to your life — and to the lives of the people closest to you.”
